November 14, 1997, Brockville, Ont. -- The Health Services Restructuring Commission (HSRC), an independent body of health experts and professionals, today released its preliminary recommendations to restructure health services in Brockville.
"Our goal is to achieve the best possible publicly-funded health system for the people of Ontario," said HSRC Commissioner Harri Jansson, a former board member of several hospitals across Canada. "We believe our decisions will set the stage for building an improved and better coordinated health services system in Brockville, today and in the future."
The Commission issued preliminary recommendations (Notices of Intention to Issue Directions or "Notices") and announced that there will be a 14-day response period. Organizations and individuals are invited to comment on the HSRC recommendations by November 28, 1997.
Report highlights
The Commission's recommendations include:
The Commission reinforced its recommendation to the Minister of Health to transfer longer term mental health services to the Royal Ottawa Hospital and close Brockville Psychiatric Hospital. "We firmly believe it will be better for patients to receive treatment closer to home and to have better access to the specialized skills and expertise available in an academic health sciences centre," said Mr. Jansson.
The Commission recognized that Brockville Psychiatric Hospital provides acute mental health services to the residents of Brockville and manages a very comprehensive community mental health program for the region. "These important services will remain in the community, and will be locally governed and managed by Brockville General Hospital," he said.
Commission supports local solutions
Mr. Jansson commended the considerable progress the community has made in implementing health services restructuring. "Brockville has a tradition of cooperation and voluntary rationalization dating back to the 1980s," he said. "This willingness to work together coupled with the high degree of consensus concerning health services restructuring prompted the Commission to employ an expedited review in Brockville."
The Commission believes that the joint liaison mechanism recommended by the Brockville Health Services Planning Committee is a viable governance option, with some modification.
"Wherever possible, the Commission supports locally-derived solutions to determine how and where health services should be provided, and also how they should be governed," said Mr. Jansson. "We felt the joint liaison mechanism was a reasonable approach, but felt its role should be strengthened."
The HSRC directs the Brockville hospitals to amend the proposed role of the Joint Liaison Committee to create a common Joint Executive Committee. The Joint Executive Committee will consist of equal representation from the boards of the Brockville General Hospital and Providence Continuing Care Centre. It will be accountable to both boards for the implementation of restructuring in Brockville.
The Commission expects implementation of its directions and recommendations for Brockville to be completed by April 2000.
"I want to stress that there will be no reduction of services as a result of these recommendations. There will be enhanced services for all Brockville residents. We believe that our decisions will lead to improved quality and better access to a wide range of services for the population served by Brockville," concluded Mr. Jansson.
The HSRC is a group of individuals appointed by the government of Ontario to redesign the Ontario health system. It is an independent agency of doctors, academic health science professionals, hospital administrators, former hospital board members and other experts.
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